


found my own happiness

by cosim18



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alive Vernon Boyd, Asexual Relationship, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-04
Updated: 2017-10-19
Packaged: 2018-12-24 00:56:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,240
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12001569
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cosim18/pseuds/cosim18
Summary: Little snapshots of Boyd and Cora's life





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> The timeline is a little messy with this, I apologize! Boyd and Cora left at the end of 3A, and Erica still died when they were locked in the vault. The unhappy terms they left on is me trying to use the conversation from 2x11 when Boyd and Erica want to leave town and Derek just sees it as them running away.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Boyd has a conversation with someone that was a long time coming.

“Want me to go with you?” Cora asks, rubbing Boyd’s back. “I’m more than happy to if it helps.”

“Nah, I think it’s best if we talked alone. Thanks for the offer, though.” he says, smiling at her. He stands, stretching, before getting dressed for the day. He usually doesn’t put much thought into what he wears, but there’s a nervous energy running through him today. It’s been five years since they last saw each other, and things didn’t exactly end on the most positive note. But Vernon reminds himself that this needs to be done, that things need to be said.

Before he leaves, he returns to where Cora is on the bed, flipping through her kindle, to press a kiss to her forehead.

“Good luck,” she says, looking up at him. She gives a small smile, knowing how difficult the day is likely to be.

Walking down the streets that he sees everyday is a comforting motion, not needing to think about his destination. Saturdays are usually his days off, but he chose to make an exception for today, taking solace in the fact that they were meeting on his turf, where he was most comfortable.

He approaches the storefront, pulling the key out of his pocket, and smiles to himself as he unlocks the door. No matter how today goes, he tells himself, he’ll still have this. He’ll still have the life he built for himself, and the woman he loves to go home to.

Getting the restaurant ready doesn’t take much time at all, considering the handful of workers Boyd’s hired. He could get by with fewer, but he tries to have as much opportunity for locals to find jobs, and he doesn’t need the excess profits that a smaller staff would give him. He generally doesn’t arrive so much earlier than everyone else, but the nervousness coursing throughout him calls for him to double check everything, making sure it’s running smoothly and efficiently.

“Oh, Vernon, I didn’t realize you were coming in today,” his assistant manager, Kari, says. “Something wrong?” She’s preoccupied with writing the Coffee of the Day on the chalkboard and doesn’t take the time to look up.

“Everything’s fine, I’m just meeting an old friend here. He hasn’t been in town before, so I wanted to give him a chance to come somewhere one of us knew.”

“Sounds great! I hope it goes well,” she says, looking up to smile. “Let me know if I can do anything for you guys once he gets here.”

“Thanks,” Boyd says, giving her a small smile back. He makes his way behind the counter and starts the coffee brewing, as he likes for the shop to already have the aroma before opening. Just as he puts the grinds away and starts to walk toward the door to unlock it, he sees his visitor looking at the Hours sign posted on the window. He backs up to look inside and smiles when he sees Boyd, raising a hand to wave. Vernon makes his way over, steeling himself for the conversation to come.

“I guess I should’ve asked if you like coffee,” he says, pulling the man in for a hug. When they part, he continues. “I’m glad you could make it, Derek.”

“Me too. I know things didn’t go so well for us when we parted, but I’m really happy we could do this. And yes, I do like coffee,” Derek says, chuckling a little. “Sometimes I feel like I have more coffee in me than blood. So this is your place?” Boyd motions him inside, and they sit at a table near the back, out of the noise of the morning rush.

“Yeah, I found a job here shortly after Cora and I moved down here, and I slowly rose through the ranks before the owner handed over the keys to me. He technically owns the property, but he was looking to retire, and I was apparently the best worker he had at the time.”

“I think it’s great,” Derek says, and his face dimples slightly. “I’m really happy for you, Vernon. Truly.” Boyd can see a deeper sadness in Derek’s eyes and can’t help but wonder if it’s in part because he regrets what happened.

“Thank you, I appreciate it.” The air fills with a stilted silence, but it’s quickly relieved when Kari makes her way over to them with a couple cups of coffee. Boyd gives her a smile and a nod as a thank you.

“How’s Cora? I’m assuming she didn’t come today?” Derek asks, blowing gently on his beverage.

“She’s great,” Boyd says. “And we’re really happy, you know. I know it was hard for us to leave, especially her, but we’re alive, and that’s what counts most in this world.” He pauses to take a sip of his coffee, watching Derek. “She chose to leave, she wasn’t driven out and she wasn’t dragged along.” 

“I know that,” Derek says, slightly defensively. “Nothing could make Cora do something she didn't want to. I just - I worry about you two. You both went through a lot, and I wonder if withdrawing from everyone else was always such a good idea.”

“It was for us. I wasn’t lying when I said I wanted to be like Scott all those years ago. But I learned very quickly that finding your own happiness is more important than trying to be something you’re not. I’m not the type of person who can always defend everything I stand for without being willing to sacrifice. I lost Erica, and that kind of thing changes you forever. I couldn’t help her, and rushing into battles constantly wouldn’t do her honor. She wouldn’t have wanted me to risk my life for someone who didn’t deserve that chance. Trying to be like Scott is what got her killed. But I found a home in Cora, Derek. She understands the loss I felt, and she understands not being able to live up to what you think others may want or expect from you. That’s why we live here, why we’re perfectly fine with the domestic bliss that comes out of owning a small business in a small town.”

The two are quiet for another moment before Derek speaks up, surprising them both a little.

“Well if you’re happy, I’m happy. That’s why I came here, I just wanted to make sure you were happy. Everyone else keeps in contact except for you two.” He pauses to drink more, an excuse to gather his thoughts. “I also wanted to come to apologize. I wasn’t the alpha you deserved, that Erica or Isaac deserved. I was only interested in power, and the vulnerability of teenagers was easy to target. She’s dead because of me, because I didn’t know how to lead and protect you. And I’m sorry that I blamed you for leaving. I’m sorry I made you feel less than just for wanting to get away from the fight. I should never have dragged you into everything, much less expected you to fight for my own cause.”

Boyd reaches out a hand, placing it on Derek’s.

“You don’t need to apologize for any of that. Well, maybe the expectations you put on us. But if it weren’t for you, I never would’ve become friends with Erica or Cora, I never would’ve had any experiences outside of school and working at the ice rink. No experience in life is completely good or bad, and nobody is perfect. You were a selfish dick of an alpha,” he pauses when Derek laughs a little. “It’s true and we both know it. But you were following your heart, and there’s nothing wrong with that. And you’ve learned from your mistakes, becoming a better man in the process. I’m proud of you, Derek.” He smiles before draining the rest of his cup.

They talk for a couple hours more, catching up and swapping stories. Derek learns that Boyd has gained almost complete control over his powers and couldn’t be prouder of his third beta. They talk about the potential of Cora and Boyd getting married, and Boyd fawns over Derek’s pictures of Braeden and their three children. They discuss Scott and where their old friends are now. But after a while, the conversation fades and they soon realize that there’s not much else to talk about. They’ve both become strong, independent men whose lives don’t quite intermingle. But they decide to meet up every five years, for old times’ sake.

As Boyd closes shop for the evening, he looks up to the night sky, the full moon shining overhead. He wonders if Derek is fully shifted into his wolf, or if he stays human most of the time. 

Passersby swear they see Boyd’s eyes light up a fiery shade of gold as he smiles contentedly.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Boyd and Cora visit Erica's grave and he reflects on their past.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A couple of things:  
> ~ This is set in the same universe as the first chapter, which is why I just added it on.  
> ~ The show never explained what happened to Alicia, so I'm just going with the theory that they were ice skating and she fell through the ice and died.

They do this every year, on the same day. Being locked in the vault led to a loss of time, not knowing what day it was, and so they gave her an arbitrary date, something solid to remember her by. It doesn't actually mean anything, but it helps them put the past in perspective.

It’s raining this year, fitting for the occasion. Storm clouds brew overhead, and as Boyd opens the umbrella he feels a few drops hit his face, blending in with the silent tears. He pauses at Cora’s door, and she ducks her head to share the dry space under the umbrella. The car door slams as she kicks on it, and they trudge through the wet grass and mud to stand in front of the gravestone. They’re both quiet people to begin with, and that doesn’t change today.

Cora leans into Boyd’s body, taking in the warmth emanating off his chest, and lays her head there. Her fingers snake down his arm to meet his hand and they hold onto one another, tethering each other to the ground, to the spot where she is too. 

_ ‘Here lies Erica Reyes: Daughter, Friend, Lover. Gone too soon from our lives.’ _

“It’s not fair,” Cora whispers. If Boyd wasn’t accustomed to her speaking, to her mannerisms, her words would’ve been lost to the rainstorm around them.

“No, it’s not,” he says. There’s nothing more to it, nothing else to say. They both know life is unfair, painfully so at times, but the fact that  _ she  _ had to die was something neither could forgive the universe for. She’d been their bridge to one another, willing to connect the two, forming a triad.

When Boyd and Erica were thrown in the vault, Cora had already been captured. She’d been there a week before the wolves began howling in the woods, piquing Derek’s betas’ senses. Silence dominated their prison, only interrupted by the taunting of the alphas. But Erica took the first step forward, making an effort to befriend Cora. They were in it together, the three of them, and there was no use staying separate. 

A few days after that, and they couldn’t stand to be away from one another. They were in constant physical contact, holding hands with fierce determination or using each other as pillows when they could manage sleep. When they found out that Cora was Derek’s sister, they didn’t bat an eye, and Boyd and Erica were more than happy to fill Cora in on what Derek was like, as an alpha and as a friend. Cora found it amusing that both of them had crushes on her older brother, but she explained it away by not having seen or heard from him in years. The connection between these three betas was something that pulled them even closer. They drew strength from one another, and that strength got Erica killed.

They’d been discussing the eclipse for some time, as a way to distract from the situation they were in. Boyd had a paper due in his astronomy class on the topic, and he hadn't gotten to research it. The girls took turns proposing different ideas and explanations, and on a rare good day, Erica felt emboldened. Their theory that the eclipse caused an increase in strength was gaining traction, more for their own hope than true justification, and Kali was being particularly harsh. The other two initially wanted to help, but they were weak. For a brief moment, Boyd and Cora thought Erica just might win the fight, but she got cocky, as she was wont to do, and Kali had the cruelty to leave her body in the vault for a few days afterward as a warning, a way to further break their spirits.

Looking down at the grave in front of them, Boyd squeezes Cora’s hand tighter. He thinks of his sister Alicia, who didn't even get a grave, her body never recovered from the pond. He thinks of how much his life changed when Derek walked into his and Erica’s life. What he said to Stiles was true - he only had one friend, and she was dead now. But as he listened to the sound of Cora breathing, heavier than usual because of the occasion, he knows he has more than that now. Life wasn't fair, it never would be, and someone who had experienced so much unfairness in their life would never truly get over that fact. But that doesn't mean they can’t move forward with their lives, loving when they can, and fighting when they must.


End file.
